Hanger for fire sprinkler pipe

ABSTRACT

A one-piece hanger is formed with a pair of spaced segments or legs joined by an end wall. Each segment has a recess formed in an edge which is open towards the recess on an edge of the opposite segment. The two recesses are aligned so as to create a substantially full opening to receive a pipe. The hanger may be positioned on a pipe with the segments extending substantially parallel to the pipe axis, and the hanger can then be rotated about 90° so that the pipe extends through the substantially full opening formed by the recesses. The hanger end is formed with mounting holes.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a divisional of U.S. patent application Ser. No.10/446,292, filed May 28, 2003 which is hereby incorporated by referencein its entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

This invention relates in general to hangers for attaching pipes tostructural support members and in particular for hangers used to supportoverhead pipes in fire protection sprinkler systems.

2. Description of the Related Art

Typically in automatic fire sprinkler systems, pipe is placed inconcealed spaces which are made by the framing members of the particularstructure in which the system is being installed. In order to avoidexcessive drilling of holes through structural members or supports inwhich to extend the pipe, installers generally attempt to install thepipe in the natural channels which parallel the supports. This space isgenerally above the finished ceiling visible to the building occupant.This finished ceiling, which is generally attached to the bottom of thesupports, is typically fabricated from a relatively soft sheet-rock orfiberglass tile.

Thus, it is desirable to have a hanger or bracket which will attach to asupport and hold the pipe in place. Such pipe hangers that have beendeveloped in the past generally clamp the pipe flush with the support.This is a problem, because the necessary adapter fitting which ispositioned in the pipe and in the sprinkler head is of a larger diameterthan the pipe, and thus does not allow the sprinkler head to fit in acorrect installation when the pipe is mounted flush against thestructural member.

The pipe and adapter need to be offset from the support in order toallow space for the adapter and the sprinkler head to sit properly. Thisis typically accomplished by attaching blocks of wood between thesupport and the hanger. Unfortunately, a significant amount of time andeffort is required to attach the blocks to the supports, and then thehangers to the blocks. Additionally, this requires the installer to haveavailable a sufficient number of wood blocks. It is also quite timeconsuming to attach a wood block, and then attach a pipe via a bracketor hanger.

Another concern in the installation of such sprinkler systems is thepossibility of an upward surge when the water pressure is suddenlyreleased. This surge could be strong enough to cause the sprinkler headto push through the relatively soft sheet-rock of the finished ceilingand spray water above the sheet-rock, thus rendering the sprinkleruseless in putting out a fire below the level of the visible ceiling. Infact, an industry standard exists which requires a fire sprinklerinstallation to withstand an upward surge of at least 340 pounds.

Some hangers have been developed to replace the wooden block approachdescribed above. However, further improvements are desirable. Morespecifically, it is desirable to have a hanger which provides thenecessary standoff from a support structure, but at the same time issufficiently low in cost and high in convenience that it can also beused in situations in which the standoff feature is not mandatory. Thisreduces inventory for manufacturers and users of such hangers.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a pipehanger for a fire protection sprinkler system pipe, capable of holdingthe pipe spared from the support to which it is attached, without theuse of wood blocks or other superfluous parts. It is another object ofthe present invention to provide a pipe hanger with an incorporatedsurge-protecting component. It is yet another object of the presentinvention to provide a pipe hanger with improved ease of installation.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with the invention, a one piece pipe hanger is providedthat is preferably made from a flat sheet of stiff but bendable metal.The completed hanger has a pair of spaced, substantially parallelsegments that are joined by an end wall. The space between the segmentsis sized so that a pipe to be supported can be positioned between thesegments, with the pipe extending in a plane roughly parallel to thesegments. Each of the segments has a recess on one side edge sized toreceive about one-half of the cross-section of the pipe. The segmentrecesses face each other and have a substantially common center line sothat the recesses form a substantially full opening when viewed alignedwith the common center line. That is, the segment recesses are spacedfrom each other; but taken together, they form an opening configured toreceive the pipe. In order to position the pipe in the opening, thehanger may be rotated about 90° about its axis so the pipe fits in thefull opening with the common center line of the recesses substantiallyaligned with the longitudinal axis of the pipe.

Preferably, the segment recesses have approximately a semi-circularshape and thus together form a substantially circular shapecorresponding to that of the pipe. Preferably also, the segment edgerecesses are formed by short generally semi-cylindrical portions thatextend away from each other and are somewhat rounded on their ends sothat sharp edges are not presented to the pipe when the hanger isrotated on the pipe into the desired position.

To mount the hanger to a support, such as an overhead beam, the hangerend wall is formed with openings to receive a fastener adapted to bemounted to the support. Preferably the end wall has a central portionwhich protrudes towards the edge recesses with the protrusion having apair of holes, one on each side of a reference line passing through thecenter of the protrusion and said common center line. Each of the holeshas an axis angled with respect to the reference line so that a fastenermay be inserted through either of the holes without interference with apipe positioned in the full opening.

The hanger can conveniently and economically be stamped and formed froma metal plate. The plate is first cut to form the two segments and theconnecting end wall with an edge recess formed in each of the segments.Each segment has its recess side facing opposite sides of a lineconnecting center points of the openings. Preferably, the portions ofthe plate forming the recesses are deformed or flared into shortsemi-cylindrical portions extending away from the plane of the plate.Also, the ends of the segment remote from the end wall are flaredslightly out of the plane of the plate in a direction opposite to thatof the semi-cylindrical portions.

Also, in that same step, the central portion of the end wall is formedto create a protrusion which protrudes in a direction opposite to thatof the flared edge recesses. The center of the protrusion preferablyextends along the line extending between the center points of thetwo-recess openings. A pair of holes are formed in the protrusion onopposite ends of the center of the protrusion so that the axis of eachof the holes angles away from the line extending between the edgerecesses.

As a final step, the flat sheet is bent along two substantially parallellines which are perpendicular to the line joining the centers of theedge recess opening, with the segments being bent about 90° towards eachother to extend in generally parallel relation spaced about the diameterof the pipe to be supported. Each recess is spaced the same distancefrom the end wall so that the two recesses are aligned to form the pipereceiving opening referred to above.

Advantageously, the one-piece construction simplifies the installationprocedure on an overhead pipe. The installer simply needs to positionthe hanger so that the pipe is between the segments with the axis of thepipe approximately intersecting the common center line of the recessesin the support. It is then only necessary to rotate the hanger about 90°about the axis of the pipe to position the pipe within the supportopening. The described hanger is useful for situations in which spacingbetween the support and the pipe is needed as well as in situationswhere this is not needed. Consequently, only a single hanger needs to bemanufactured and inventoried.

All of the embodiments discussed above are intended to be within thescope of the invention herein disclosed. These and other embodiments ofthe present invention will become readily apparent to those skilled inthe art from the following detailed description of the preferredembodiments having reference through the attached figures, the inventionnot being limited to any particular preferred embodiment disclosed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an end view of a structural member to which is attached a fireprotection sprinkler system using hangers having features and advantagesof the present invention.

FIG. 2 illustrates an alternative installation of a fire protectionsprinkler system using the hanger of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a hanger of the present invention with abroken line showing of a pipe supported by the hanger.

FIG. 4A is a front elevational view of the hanger.

FIG. 4B is a cross sectional view of the hanger along line 4B-4B of FIG.4A.

FIG. 4C is a top plan view of the hanger.

FIG. 5A is a perspective view of the hanger in an initial position whenbeing installed on a pipe.

FIG. 5B is another view of the hanger and pipe of FIG. 5A from adifferent perspective.

FIG. 6 illustrates a method by which the hanger can be fabricated.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

FIGS. 1 and 2 show fire protection sprinkler installations showing apipe 12 fixed to a support by a pair of hangers 10 of the presentinvention. In FIG. 1, the upper hanger extends laterally away from avertical support to space a horizontal pipe away from the verticalsupport. The lower hanger is positioned 90° with respect to the upperone and spaces a vertical pipe away from the vertical support. The lowerend of the vertical pipe has an adapter 18 positioned thereon andmounted within a ceiling 19 with a sprinkler head 20 extending below theceiling. As can be seen, the hangers space the pipes away from thevertical support so that the adapter 18 does not interfere with themounting of the sprinkler head 20.

In FIG. 2, the vertical pipe is supported by a lower hanger in the samefashion illustrated in FIG. 1, but the upper hanger positions ahorizontal pipe extending above the support in that arrangement, theupper hanger is positioned to prevent upward movement of the pipe in theevent an upward surge is applied to the pipe when water pressure isapplied to the sprinkler system. Thus the upper hanger prevents thesprinkler head from moving upwardly above the ceiling.

Referring to FIGS. 3 and 4, the hanger 10 includes a pair of main legsor segments which for convenience are referred to as a left segment 30and a right segment 32, as viewed in FIGS. 3 and 4. The lower ends ofthe segments are joined by a substantially rectangular end wall 34. Thesegments 30 and 32 have generally a planer configuration and extend inspaced, substantially parallel relation. The space between the segmentsis preferably about equal to the diameter of the pipe 12.

The left segment 30 has a side edge 30 a which slopes upwardly andinwardly and curves slightly beyond a reference line 4B-4B. A right edgeof the left segment has a recess 38 which preferably has a semicircularshape, with a center line 40 which intersects the reference line 4B-4B.The recess 38 preferably extends slightly more than 180°, with a 180°portion of the recess being bounded by the reference line 4B-4B. Thusthe tip 30 b of the left segment 30 extends slightly to the right of thereference line 4B-4B. The lower edge of the recess 38 blends into ashort vertical edge 30 c of the segment 30 and then blends into asubstantially horizontal edge 30 d, bounding a short vertical wall whichextends to the bottom wall 34. The recess 38 is actually bounded by ashort semi-cylindrical wall 30 e, as best seen in FIGS. 4B and 4C. Theouter edge 30 f of the wall 30 e is flared outwardly. It may also beseen from FIG. 4B that the upper edge or tip 30 b is flared outwardly,away from the space between the segments 30 and 32. As best seen in FIG.3, the segment 30 adjacent the lower tip 30 g of the wall 30 e ispartially cut away to allow that tip to flex somewhat to facilitate theinsertion of the hanger onto a pipe 12.

The right segment 32 is essentially a mirror image of the left segment30. It includes an outer edge 32 a extending upwardly and inwardly fromthe right edge of the bottom wall to an upper edge 32 b. A recess 42 isformed along its left edge which has a substantially semi-cylindricalshape, with the recess center substantially aligned with the center line40 of the left recess 38. The recess 42 is formed by a shortsemi-cylindrical wall 32 e extending outwardly from the space betweenthe segments and having its outer edge 30 f flared outwardly away fromthe center of the recess. The right segment 32 a also has a shortvertical edge 32 c extending downwardly from the recess 42 and merginginto a horizontal edge 32 d bounding a short vertical which extendsdownwardly to the bottom wall 34 and to the left edge of the bottomwall. As with the recess 38, the recess 42 preferably extends slightlymore than 180°, with a 180° portion being bounded by the reference line4B-4B which passes through the center line 40 of the recesses.Consequently, the vertical edges 30 c and 32 c overlap a small amount,and likewise the upper edge or tip portions 30 b and 32 b overlap. Thismay be seen in FIG. 4A, and is consistent with the cross-hatching inFIG. 4B. As also seen from FIG. 4B, the upper segment ends 30 b and 32 bare flared outwardly away from each other to facilitate the entry of thehanger onto a pipe.

From the drawings it can be seen that the open mouths of the recessesextend in opposite directions so that the two semi-circular recessesform a full opening when viewed on the centerline 40 as seen in FIG. 4A.

As best seen from FIGS. 4A and 4B, the edge or bottom wall 34 has aprotrusion extending upwardly creating a left angled segment 34 a and aright angled segment 34 b. The protrusion is centrally positioned on thebottom wall, thus being centered on the reference line 4B/4B. As seen,the protrusion extends upwardly towards the center line 40 of therecesses 38 and 42. Each of the angled segments 34 a and 34 b has a hole50 for receiving a fastener. The segments 34 a and 34 b are angled suchthat a line perpendicular to either of the segments and passing throughthe center of a hole 50, does not intersect the recesses 38 or 42. Thispermits installation of a fastener through either of the holes withoutinterference by a pipe extending through the substantially full openingformed by the recesses 38 and 42.

As seen in FIG. 4C, the bottom wall is preferably also provided with apair of additional mounting holes 52 adjacent the ends of the bottomwall.

In use, a hanger is slid onto a pipe so that the hanger segmentsstraddle the pipe as shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B. The hanger bottom wall 34should be oriented substantially parallel to the pipe axis 13, and thecommon center line 40 of the recesses 38 and 42 should be positioned tobe approximately perpendicular to the pipe axis 13 as shown in FIG. 5.

In that position, the hanger can be rotated about 90° in one direction,namely, in the direction of the open mouths of the recesses 38 and 42.The hanger semi-cylindrical portions 30 e and 32 e prevent rotation inthe opposite direction. With the hanger rotated 90° it is thenpositioned as shown in FIG. 3, wherein the pipe is captured within theopening formed by the two recesses. That is, even though the recessesare spaced from each other, they form together substantially a fullopening with its common center line 40 being aligned with the axis 13.The flared segment edges 30 f and 32 f on the outer ends of thesemi-cylindrical portion 30 e and 32 e prevent damage to the typicallyplastic piping.

If the pipe is already supported in an overhead position, the hanger canbe slid on the pipe to its desired mounting position. Similarly, if thepipe has not yet been supported from above, the pipe with one or morehangers loosely positioned thereon may be raised to its desiredlocation. One of the advantages of the hanger is that the angled wallson the central protrusion in the bottom wall enable a fastener to beinserted through one of the holes 50 and installed without interferenceby the pipe. In many locations, a single fastener through one hole 50 inone of the protrusion walls is sufficient. However, if a more securefastening is needed, fasteners may be positioned in both holes and inthe additional holes 52 in the bottom wall 34.

Another advantage of the invention is that the hanger can be efficientlymanufactured on a mass production basis with proper stamping and cuttingequipment. Referring to FIG. 6, the hanger 10 is illustrated in flatform as being cut from a rectangular sheet 70. The segments 30 and 32are shown on opposite sides of the connecting end wall 34. Thesemi-cylindrical walls 30 e and 32 e may be deformed from the metalplate to create the recesses 38 and 42. The center 40 of each recess ison a line 4B-4B which is perpendicular to lines 72 forming the edges ofthe end wall 34. The centers 40 are of course each equidistant from arespective one of the lines 72. The segment upper edges 30 b and 32 bmay also be flared in that operation. Likewise, the protrusion formingthe walls 34 a and 34 b can be formed in that same operation with theprotrusion extending in a direction opposite to that of thesemi-cylindrical walls 30 e and 32 e. The holes 52 adjacent the ends ofthe wall 34 may likewise be formed in that operation. The holes 50 inthe angled walls 34 a and 34 b can also possibly be formed in that samestep, but if not, can be formed in a separate step.

The flat hanger can then be bent about 90° along spaced, parallel lines72 forming the edges of the bottom wall so that the segments 30 and 32are positioned and spaced substantially parallel relation as viewed inFIG. 4 b, to complete the operation.

Advantageously, only a single hanger style is required in that thehanger can be used to simply support a pipe or to space the pipe from asupport to provide the necessary clearance for a sprinkler system.Having a single design minimizes inventorying expenses for manufacturersand installers. The one-piece design also facilitates installationprocedures in that an installer need not juggle two pieces whilestanding in a sometimes precarious overhead position. Also, theefficient manufacturing process described above minimizes themanufacturing expenses for large volume production.

While the foregoing describes a preferred arrangement, the invention isnot limited to the embodiment illustrated. For example, whilesemi-circular recesses for receiving a pipe is the preferred shape,straight-walled recesses could be employed if desired. While it ispreferable that the recesses extend slightly more than 180° so as tobest secure a pipe, recesses extending somewhat less than 180° arepossible. Also, while not considered necessary, the main segments couldhave wall portions that extend over the ends of the bottom wall 34 toprovide additional strength to the structure. While the preferredspacing between the segments is approximately equal to the diameter ofthe pipe on which it is to be mounted, it may be desirable to have theopen ends of the segments spaced somewhat closer than that in that thehanger can be forced onto the pipe by spreading the legs or segmentsslightly. That arrangement enables the hanger to be captured on a pipebefore the pipe is raised to its desired location. The hanger then canbe rotated to its proper orientation when it is adjacent the support towhich it is to be attached. Conversely, while that arrangement isconvenient, the spacing between the segments can be larger than thediameter of the pipe to some degree, although that is a less stablearrangement. The thickness of the plate used to form the hanger is amatter of choice. However, utilizing sheet metal approximately 1/16″thick is a practical and efficient dimension in that the material iseasily bendable, but at the same time can withstand great loads in thedirection of the plane of the segments.

Although the invention has been disclosed in the context of certainpreferred embodiments and examples, it will be understood by thoseskilled in the art that the present invention extends beyond thespecifically disclosed embodiments to other alternatives and/or uses ofthe invention and obvious modifications and equivalents thereof. Thus itis intended that the scope of the invention herein disclosed not belimited by the particular embodiments described but should be determinedonly be a fair reading of the claims that follow.

1. A method of making a pipe hanger comprising the steps of: providing aflat sheet of metal; forming a pair of edge recesses in said sheet, saidpair of recesses being spaced from each other, each recess comprising acenter point, an imaginary reference line connecting the center pointsof the recesses, each recess comprising an open side facing oppositesides of the imaginary reference line; bending said sheet 90° along apair of spaced substantially parallel lines positioned between saidrecesses, said pair of lines extending generally perpendicular to saidreference line, said bends along said spaced substantially parallellines creating a pair of spaced generally parallel segments joined by anend wall that is defined between said pair of lines, said pair of linesbeing located so that after bending the centers of said recesses aresubstantially aligned on a common centerline thereby creating asubstantially 360° opening when viewed along a direction aligned withsaid common centerline.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the methodfurther comprises forming a first hole and a second hole in a regionbounded by the pair of spaced substantially parallel lines.
 3. Themethod of claim 2, wherein each of the first hole and the second holecomprises an axial center and the centers are substantially centeredbetween the pair of spaced substantially parallel lines.
 4. The methodof claim 1, wherein each recess comprises a closed side and asemi-cylindrical wall is formed along the closed side of each recess. 5.The method of claim 1, wherein an outer surface of each of the parallelsegments is flared outward.
 6. A method of supporting a pipe comprisingthe steps of: positioning a pipe hanger on a pipe so that the pipeextends between a pair of spaced parallel segments of said hanger with alongitudinal axis of the pipe extending substantially perpendicular to acommon centerline of a recess formed in an edge of each of saidsegments, with an open portion of said recesses being aligned so thatwhen viewed along the common axis, the recesses create a substantially360° opening; substantially aligning the longitudinal axis with thecommon centerline of the recesses of the segments such that thelongitudinal axis substantially intersects the common centerline; androtating the hanger with respect to the pipe axis so as toconcentrically align said common centerline with said pipe axis andthereby capture the pipe in the substantially 360° opening formed by thehanger segments.
 7. The method of claim 6 further comprising the step ofmounting an end wall of said hanger, which end wall is positionedbetween said segments, to a supporting structure with the pipe capturedin said substantially 360° opening.
 8. The method of claim 7, whereinthe step of mounting an end wall to the supporting structure comprisesinserting a threaded fastener through a hole formed in the end wall,which hole is offset in a first direction from the common centerline. 9.The method of claim 8, wherein the step of mounting an end wall to thesupporting structure comprises inserting another threaded fastenerthrough another hole that also is formed in the end wall, which hole isoffset from the common centerline in a second direction from the commoncenterline.